Diabetes could have better treatments. Or at least, more efficient. A study led by the University of Barcelona (UB) and the Network Biomedical Research Center for Diabetes and Associated Metabolic Diseases (Ciberdem) have discovered a new mechanism that “could improve efficiency” of the available treatments against diabetes.
The study, published in the journal 'Metabolism', shows that increasing the level of a certain protein (GDF15) could keep the liver in good condition and help treat type 2 diabetes.
The GDF15 protein It is a factor that is expressed at high levels in many diseases (heart failure, cancer or fatty liver). They observed that obese patients also have high levels of this protein, but its functioning is altered and can develop resistance.
Why is this GDF15 protein key?
The director of the study, Manuel Vázquez-Carrera, – professor at the Faculty of Pharmacy and Food Sciences at the UB – explains that the GDF15 factor “inhibits glucose synthesis in the liver” and that this pathway has a key role in the generation of hyperglycemia symptoms in patients with type 2 diabetes, reports 'Europa Press'.
The action of the protein would also help “reduce” the presence ofliver fibrosisassociated with higher mortality in patients with fatty liver.
The results obtained from the study indicate that GDF15 protein activates AMPK protein and inhibits hepatic gluconeogenesis and fibrosis and “that this modulation of this protein could be useful to improve the effectiveness of current antidiabetic treatments.
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